A man aged about 48 was killed after being swept away by water from the Peguès stream in Olivella, south of Barcelona, during heavy rain that fell across parts of Catalonia overnight Wednesday and continued until Thursday morning, 17 September 2026, causing flooding and widespread disruption to public transport services.
Firefighters recovered the man's body on Thursday morning about 500 metres from the site of his vehicle. Catalan police confirmed that the victim had been driving, while a witness told authorities that he got out after fast-moving water surrounded the car and was then swept away. Emergency services received a report of the incident at 11:03 p.m.
Investigation into the death of the Olivella driver
Olivella Mayor Marta Verdejo said the vehicle became stuck in the stream while attempting to cross a bridge linking the villages of Mas Mestre and Las Colinas, noting that water was flowing over the bridge at the time. She added that the circumstances remained under investigation and warned against rushing to determine whether the incident resulted from recklessness or was accidental.
Catalan President Salvador Illa expressed his condolences over the driver's death and said Civil Protection had sent an alert to residents' phones in affected areas. He called for stronger preparedness and a culture of self-protection, saying in remarks about climate change that these conditions would persist.
Catalonia emergency call totals
In Sitges, water from the left bank of the Ribera de Ribes flooded part of a campsite, forcing about 270 people to evacuate. Many returned home or moved to a nearby campsite. Civil Protection recorded 57.4 millimetres of rain in Sant Pere de Ribes in 30 minutes and 85.6 millimetres in Canyelles over three hours.
The rain affected Barcelona's metro network, with Line 4 operating only between La Pau and Verdaguer, and Line 11 between Trinitat Nova and Ciutat Meridiana. The central platform at Fabra i Puig station on Line 1 was also taken out of service.
The Rodalies network imposed local speed restrictions because of the weather, causing delays of up to 30 minutes. Trains on lines R6 and R60 also ran with delays of up to 25 minutes because of a precautionary speed reduction between Masquefa and La Pobla de Claramunt.
